Smart Metering Progress in Ireland

The National Smart Metering Plan in Ireland is a key Government priority in the context of enabling the development of a Smart Grid, facilitating more efficient use of energy and underpinning smart and sustainable economic growth.

The importance of Smart Metering within the Government’s energy policy, and indeed within its wider economic strategy, reflects the fact that, at EU level, Smart Metering is seen as a critical tool in managing energy demand in the interests of consumers and businesses.

In December 2009, the Energy Services Directive (Directive 2006/32/EC) was transposed into Irish law under the European Communities (Energy End Use Efficiency and Energy Services) Regulations 2009, Statutory Instrument No. 542 of 200921_{. These Regulations also amend the Electricity Regulation Act 1999}

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E09-RMF-17-03 ERGEG Status review on regulatory aspects of smart metering as of May 2009

www.energy-

regulators.eu/portal/page/portal/EER_HOME/EER_PUBLICATIONS/CEER_ERGEG_PAPERS/Customers/T ab/E09-RMF-17-03_SmartMetering-SR_19-Oct-09.pdf

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to allow the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) to place requirements on energy undertakings in relation to informative billing.

“(5) The Commission may, by direction under subsection (1), require an energy undertaking to do any or all of the following—

(a) provide bills to its final customers, based on actual energy use, at such frequency as may be specified by the Commission to enable those customers to regulate their own energy consumption in a timely manner,...”

In May 2009 the first National Energy Efficiency Action Plan (NEEAP)22 _was adopted in line with EU requirements. The first NEEAP set out the key targets to be met in order to achieve our 2020 commitments, including Action 33:

“We will encourage more energy efficient behaviour by householders through the introduction of smart meters”.

The second NEEAP, due to be published in October 2011, will reiterate the importance of smart metering as a key tool for realising long term energy demand management objectives.

1.5.5.2 CER Smart Metering Project

In March 2007 the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) issued a Demand Side Management and Smart Metering Consultation Paper (CER/07/038)23 _in which the case for providing domestic and small business customers with time- of-day electricity prices and smart metering arrangements was made. This was followed in November 2007 with the publication by the CER of an information paper, Smart Metering - The Next Step in Implementation (CER/07/198)24, _which outlined a proposed framework in which the future scope of smart metering arrangements can be established.

Following on from the conclusions reached in the smart metering information paper CER/07/198 the CER established the Smart Metering Project Phase 1 in late 2007 with the objective of setting up and running smart metering trials and assessing their costs and benefits, which will inform decisions relating to the full rollout of an optimally designed universal National Smart Metering Plan.

In order to draw on the experience and expertise of the electricity and gas market a Steering Group and a Working Group was established by the CER for the

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Chapter 07 – Residential Sector, Page 79

www.dcenr.gov.ie/Energy/Energy+Efficiency+and+Affordability+Division/National+Energy+Efficiency+Action +Plan.htm 23 www.cer.ie/en/electricity-retail-market-current-consultations.aspx?article=01b6318d-3876-4630-8bb5- f54fb368be16 24 www.cer.ie/en/electricity-retail-market-current-consultations.aspx?article=01b6318d-3876-4630-8bb5- f54fb368be16

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Smart Metering Project Phase 1. Both groups are chaired by the CER and consist of representatives from the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources (DCENR), Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation (NIAUR) and Irish gas and electricity industry participants (Figure 8).

Figure 8: Smart Metering Project Phase 1 – Overview of Participants

To achieve its objectives the Smart Metering Working Group was divided into four Work Streams each focusing on separate aspects of the Smart Metering Project Phase 1 (Figure 9 and Figure 10):

 Networks: Technical design and rollout of smart metering infrastructure required for the technology trials and customer behavior trials.

Lead: ESB Networks (electricity) and Bord Gáis Networks (gas).

 Customer Behaviour: Mainly focusing on the design and implementation of all aspects of the customer behavioural trials, including participant selection, communications and analysis of results.

Lead: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI).

 Tariffs: Mainly focusing on design of Tariffs for the customer behavior trials (time of use tariffs for electricity and a variable seasonal tariff for gas) and development of a Prepayment Trial.

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 Billing / Data: Mainly focusing on data flows from the smart metering systems to Suppliers, for customer behaviour trial billing options, and statisticians, for analysis of results from the customer behavior trials. Lead: Bord Gáis Energy.

The CER was responsible for undertaking Smart Metering Cost-Benefit Analyses (CBAs) for national electricity and gas smart metering rollouts and worked with Frontier Economics and the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) in this regard. As part of this work, the CER identified the information requirements for a CBA, the parties responsible for providing such information and coordinated the transfer of the required information to the ESRI (Electricity CBA) and Frontier Economics (Gas CBA) for their modelling. The CER also arranged for an external review of the supplier and network operator cost and benefits included in the CBAs, which was conducted by Frontier Economics for both the electricity and gas CBAs. A peer review of the gas CBA was conducted by the ESRI.

Figure 9: Smart Metering Project Phase 1 – Governance Structure

The key deliverables of the Smart Metering Project Phase 1 are depicted below:

Figure 10: Smart Metering Project Phase 1 – High-Level Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

Smart Metering Steering Group CER Smart Metering Working Group CER Tariffs Work Stream Billing–Data Work Stream Networks Work Stream Customer Behaviour Work Stream Smart Metering Project Procure & Start-Up Technology Trials Customer Behaviour Trials Residential SMEs Prepayment Market Model Micro Generation Analysis Cost Benefit Analysis

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Overall, project progress has been very positive with all key milestones having been achieved. The main highlights to date have been the:

 Completion of the electricity customer behaviour trials (CBT) for residential and SME customers in December 2010 and completion of associated analysis and reporting in April 2011, the detailed report of which was published in May 2011 (CER/11/080a).

 Completion of the electricity technology trials in September 2010, the detailed report of which was published in May 2011 (CER/11/080b).

 Completion of the ‘smart prepayment’ trial in February 2011, the findings of which are included in the electricity CBT report (CER/11/080a).

 Completion of the electricity cost-benefit analysis in April 2011, the detailed report of which was published in May 2011 (CER/11/080c).

 Completion of the gas customer behaviour trials (CBT) for residential and SME customers in May 2011 and completion of associated analysis and reporting in September 2011, the detailed report of which is published alongside this CBA (CER/11/180a).

 Completion of the dual fuel technology trials in May 2011, the detailed report of which is published alongside this CBA (CER/11/180b).

 Completion of the gas cost-benefit analysis in September 2011, the subject of this report (CER/11/180c).

Further detailed information on the CER Smart Metering Project and its progress to date is available via the consultation papers and information papers that have been published on www.cer.ie.

 Smart Metering Information Paper 5 – CER/11/180 – 11th October 2011

- Gas Smart Metering Customer Behaviour Trial (CBT) Findings Report – CER/11/180a – 11th October 2011

- Dual Fuel Smart Metering Technology Trial Findings Report – CER/11/180b – 11th October 2011

 Smart Metering Information Paper 4 – CER/11/080 – 16 May 2011

- Electricity Smart Metering Customer Behaviour Trials (CBT) Findings Report – CER/11/080a – 16th May 2011

- Electricity Smart Metering Technology Trial Findings Report – CER/11/080b – 16th May 2011

- Electricity Smart Metering Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) Report – CER/11/080c – 16th May 2011

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- Responses to Consultation Paper 2 – CER/11/033 – 18th February 2011 - Consultation Paper 2 – CER/10/197 – 11th November 2010

- Responses to Consultation Paper 1 CER/10/161 – 9th September 2010 - Consultation Paper 1 – CER/10/082 – 11th June 2010

 Other Smart Metering Information Papers:

- Information Paper 3 - CER/09/186 - 7th December 2009 - Information Paper 2 - CER/09/118 - 31st July 2009 - Information Paper 1 - CER/09/024 - 6th February 2009

Other CER publications at this same Website location relating to smart metering which may be of interest are:

 Approved Smart Metering CBTs Gas Tariff – published 1st April 2010  Approved Smart Metering CBTs Electricity Time of Use (TOU) Tariffs –

original published 2nd October 2009 and renewed 7th September 2010  Arrangements for Micro Generation Decision and Response to Comments

Received (CER/07/208) – 20th Nov 2007

 Smart Metering - The Next Step in Implementation (CER/07/198) – 5th Nov 2007

 Demand Side Management and Smart Metering Consultation Paper (CER/07/038) - March 2007